View full sizeMississippi State Rep. Jessica Upshaw died Sunday. Mississippi Bureau of Investigation spokesman Warren Strain said the crime scene unit is at a home in Mendenhall, investigating her death. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File)

MENDENHALL, Mississippi -- State Rep. Jessica Upshaw, R-Diamondhead, apparently shot herself with a small-caliber handgun Sunday afternoon in the garage of former state Rep. Clint Rotenberry's residence, according to a report in the Jackson Clarion-Ledger.

The chief of police in Mendenhall told The Associated Press that there's nothing to suggest that the death of Upshaw was anything other a suicide.

Police Chief Candy McCullum tells The Associated Press that Upshaw's body was found on concrete near the garage. McCullum says she had a gunshot wound to the head from what is believed to be a .40-caliber pistol.

McCullum says he called the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation when Upshaw was identified as a state representative. The investigation is continuing.

Funeral services are pending. Upshaw, 53, is survived by a daughter and grandchild.

Simpson County Sheriff Kenneth Lewis told the newspaper Upshaw died near where her car was parked and that she appeared to be standing between the garage and driveway when she died.

"The sheriff is saying a lot more than we're comfortable saying at this point," said MBI spokesman Warren Strain. "We have nothing new. We're still doing our investigation. We're still processing what was collected yesterday.

"There will be an autopsy conducted and more information gathered from that. We're pressing on with our investigation."

According to the Clarion-Ledger report, Upshaw and Rotenberry, who is divorced, reportedly have been dating for several years.

Strain said earlier that the shooting occurred Sunday about 1 p.m. No one has been arrested in the case.

Upshaw had been in the Legislature since 2004, representing Hancock and Harrison counties. She was the chair of the Conservation and Natural Resources Committee. She also served on the Energy, Judiciary A, Judiciary En Banc, PEER, Public Health and Human Services, Public Property, S.C. Accountability/Efficiency/Transparency, Tourism, and Ways and Means committees.

Upshaw is the fifth member of the House to die in as many months. The other four all died of natural causes.

She graduated from the University of Mississippi and its law school. Outside the Legislature, she was affiliated with the Daughters of the American Revolution, the Colonial Dames and the Orange Grove/Lyman Chamber of Commerce.